VOL. 18, NO. 4 / FALL 2023 / URNER BARRY'S REPORTER • 55
Australia. The UK and Australia have
signed a free trade agreement that
removes most tariffs on trade between
the two countries, including tariffs on
beef and sheep meat. The A-UKFTA
aims to eliminate tariffs on beef imports
from Australia over a period of 10 years.
During the transition period, Australia has
immediate access to a duty-free quota
of 35,000 tons, which will rise over time.
The tariff rate quotas allow Australian
beef to enter the UK without paying for
tariffs that would usually increase the
cost of importing.
In July 2023, Britain formally signed
a treaty to the Comprehensive and
Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific
Partnership (CPTPP). This makes Britain the
first European country to join the CPTPP
trade bloc since its creation in 2018. The
bloc originally had 11 members, including
Japan, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile,
Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru,
Singapore and Vietnam.
Meanwhile in the domestic beef market,
Urner Barry's boxed beef carcass cutout
across PGI, UTM, and OTM have been
consistently declining for three consecutive
weeks leading up to August. Consumer
demand is subdued in most parts of the
UK. Persistently high inflation and interest
rates are some of the factors that continue
to impact consumer spending habits this
summer. Overall supplies across the UK
beef market complex continue to be rated
as adequate to fully adequate. Ample
material out of freezers remain a source
of downwards pressure in the market.
Standard VLs are some of the items
that continue to see instances of deep
discounting. At the end of July all standard
VLs were trending below the 52-week
average, with some 70% VLs trades noted
as low as £2.20/kilo.
Article contributed by Dineo Komane
dineo.komane@urnerbarry.com
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